Chapter 4 Part 1
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This chapter is edited by Farouq Omileye. Thank you for your contribution!
Chapter 4: An Lan Is On the Top! (1)
For An Lan, the best way to relax was to sleep.
After all, she could prolong her life at any time, so wasting her time in slumber was hardly shameful.
Do you envy her?
That’s exactly what she wanted.
Whenever her classmates complained about her laziness, she couldn’t help but laugh.
“If you were once an Immortal Heavenly Lord, you could sleep like I do!”
Had she known how to handle her foes, she would’ve soared to the Immortal World by now.
But tonight, An Lan didn’t sleep well.
After sealing the hole, she undressed and lay on her stone bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
The quilt felt as cold as iron, an old relic from many years ago.
Negative comment.
The cushion was as hard as a rock.
Negative comment + 2.
When her round toes peeked out from under the quilt, the chill of the night air sent a shiver through her.
Something was wrong.
An Lan quickly sat up.
Her figure, perfectly symmetrical, barely shifted—only her long, soft hair swayed with the violent movement.
“Drink some hot water.”
She waved her hand toward the kettle, flicking her fingers. The cold water inside warmed almost instantly.
She took a sip.
“?!”
An Lan stared at the kettle for a long time.
It should’ve been fine, but why did the water taste a bit sour today?
“Does my Qi have a problem?”
She quickly dressed again, intent on finding a place to check her condition.
Just as her bare feet touched the cold stone floor, her body shook violently. She instinctively clutched her chest, her mind racing.
With her cultivation, it should be impossible to catch a cold on such an ordinary winter night.
Someone must be plotting against her!
A long lance materialized in her hand. It was thick, long, and taller than she was.
This was the sealed lance of the Heavenly Lord, a weapon she once used to sweep across 3,000 fields in the Immortal World without defeat—until she was struck in the knee by a sword.
But a good woman never brags about past glories.
An Lan’s gaze swept across the cave. Her divine sense surged, inspecting every corner like a tidal wave. To her surprise, she was the only living being in the entire cave.
“Am I getting old?”
An Lan sat back on the bed, lost in thought for a long time.
When her second attempt at sleep failed, she used her divine sense to scan all of Qiongming Peak.
When she found Bai Lian alone in her room, reading, An Lan’s heart relaxed a little.
“Come to me alone. Don’t disturb the others.”
“Huh?”
Bai Lian was stunned.
If she wasn’t mistaken, that was Master An Lan’s voice!
What on earth?
Bai Lian checked the time—it was already four o’clock.
The master wanted her to go to the forbidden area alone, without drawing anyone’s attention…
A sense of unease gripped her.
She hastily dropped the jade slip onto the table.
This can’t be good.
It had to be something private—otherwise, the master wouldn’t have added the second part of the instruction.
Perhaps…
She wanted her to go pick up the Fourth Martial Sister and bring her to the sect!
Bai Lian was horrified.
That’s nonsense!
Normally, the Fourth Martial Sister would only be noticed by An Lan two years after the Second Martial Sister had joined the mountain.
But now An Lan was moving too fast. Bai Lian couldn’t keep up!
Quietly, she slipped the jade slip back into her robes.
“Master, I’m coming right away.”
Don’t panic.
She had to refuse An Lan’s request—after all, she hadn’t even gotten the other two younger Martial Sisters on the right track yet.
If another one was brought in, she would be completely squeezed out.
Bai Lian took a deep breath.
Her divine sense reached out, checking the beds of the two younger Martial Sisters.
Good. They were both asleep.
She scanned the rest of the peak but couldn’t find Qing Luan, and the jade rabbit was soundly sleeping in the medicine garden, cradling a bundle of grass in its arms.
With confidence, she opened the door and left, making her way to the forbidden area where the cave was located.
“Master.”
Bai Lian greeted, ever modest.
But today, An Lan seemed different.
Her brow was furrowed, her nose slightly wrinkled, and she didn’t seem to notice that half of her clothes had slipped off her left shoulder, exposing her snow-like skin to the air.
“You’re here.”
Snapping back to her senses, An Lan quickly adjusted her clothes. Her eyes locked onto Bai Lian as if lost in thought.
Bai Lian, sensing something was off, asked, “Master, what can I do for you?”
An Lan coughed softly and inquired, “Have you encountered any difficulties recently?”
Bai Lian was taken aback. What was this about?
She quickly responded, “No… but…”
She mentioned her Martial Sisters.
“The medical pills are insufficient.”
And then, Qing Luan.
“I don’t know what I can teach her.”
An Lan nodded but wasn’t interested in these responses.
She didn’t want to hear anything about Bai Lian’s troubles with Qing Luan, Xiao Jinse, or Su Youwei.
“Don’t you have any problems of your own?”
Of course, Bai Lian had problems.
She was just a cultivator at the Golden Core Stage, nowhere near the Soul Changing Stage as everyone seemed to think.
She wasn’t pretending to be modest—she genuinely wasn’t that strong!
She recalled her conversation with Tong Yao on the way back to the Duxian sect. Tong Yao had congratulated her on breaking through to the Soul Changing Stage, but when Bai Lian tried to explain, Tong Yao just nodded enthusiastically, saying, “I understand. Elder Gaoyi must have told you to hide your strength and bide your time. I understand!”
What the hell does she understand?!
Bai Lian shook her head inwardly. This was the most troubling issue she had, and An Lan couldn’t help with it.
She lowered her head, preparing to speak, when suddenly, the system task appeared.
[Task 1: “I have no problem for the time being.” (Reward: Dust Light Symbol)]
[Task 2: “Actually, I have a problem and want to consult you, Master.” (Reward: Soft Skill +1)]
The Dust Light Symbol was a low-level talisman, useful for warding off low-grade ghosts, but Bai Lian wasn’t concerned with the reward.
Why was the system task here?
Bai Lian glanced at An Lan.
The master’s personality was deep and unpredictable.
So she decided to stay calm.
“Speaking…”
Bai Lian pulled out her book of basic magic circles.
[Task completed. Soft Skill +1]
As she processed the information in the book, new problems arose. This damned magic circle book involved deep mathematical concepts!
Bai Lian finally understood why Magic Array Masters were rarer than Alchemy Masters.
She was relieved she wasn’t a fool.
An Lan, once the Immortal Heavenly Lord, might have lost much of her power, but her knowledge was still vast.
She took the jade slip from Bai Lian.
Bai Lian stepped closer, and the two were barely an inch apart. Bai Lian’s steady heartbeat seemed to resonate with An Lan’s.
An Lan’s agitated heart miraculously found peace.
“Master, I don’t quite understand this part.”
Her finger hovered over the golden characters, triggering a distant memory in An Lan.
She recalled when Bai Lian had first joined Qiongming Peak.
